SGHS NEWSLETTER

Week 8 - Term 1, 22 March 2019

From the Principal's Desk

Shave for a Cure

The charity our school chose to support this year was the Charlie Teo Foundation. It was established to raise money for brain cancer research because brain cancer kills more children in Australia than any other disease. In the past 30 years the survival rate for sufferers of brain cancer has increased by just 1%, whereas the survival rate for other cancers has increased by up to 20%.

I am very proud to say that our school raised just over $1500 with 6 staff members and 16 students having their heads shaved.

 

South Radio

South Radio is back on the air, broadcasting on Fridays and at special events like our Shave for a Cure. This was a bit scary for our Year 7 announcers, but they handled the impromptu interviews and playlists very professionally.  Students who would like to be involved with the Radio are reminded to see Mr Miller in the HSIE staff room and get involved. There is also a radio logo competition which will close next Friday, so start designing – you could win a cool prize.

 

School Social

Next Wednesday, 27th March, students will have the chance to dance and socialise at the School Social.  This will be a great opportunity to welcome the year 7 students and tickets can be pre-purchased at a discounted rate from the library.

Diary Dates


Tuesday 26 March

  • Assembly Period 4


Wednesday 27 March

  • Whole School Social 6pm to 9pm


Thursday 28 March

  • Construction Induction Course


Friday 29 March

  • Painted Person Excursion, Minnie

Water

Monday 1 April

  • P&C Meeting 5.30 in Library
  • SMASHED Drug Education

Program

  • North Coast Soccer Gala Day


Tuesday 2 April

  • Yr 7 Stellar Program


Thursday 4 April

  • North Coast Rugby League
  • Yr 7 Stellar Program


Friday 5 April

  • Construction Induction Course



Canteen roster

Monday 25 March - Wendy Rogers

Tuesday 26 March - Sue Osborne

Wednesday 27 March - Jessica Horstman

Thursday 28 March - Help Appreciated

Friday 29 March - Wendy Rogers

Monday 1 April - Julie Ann Brett, Wendy Rogers

Parent Teacher Night

Parent Teacher Night is being held on Tuesday 9 April 2019 between 4.00 pm and 6.00 pm in the South Grafton High School Hall.

Appointments will be available via Sentral from Friday 15 March 2019 onwards.

Alternatively, appointments can be made through the front office by calling 66421466.

School Uniforms

Our red polo shirts are finally here!

Any students that has ordered one can pick it up from the Library.

We also had our hoodies and caps arrive over the last few weeks and there is plenty of stock available.

Our new grey track pants have been ordered and should be here by the end of the term. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for their arrival.

Supporting and Linking Tradeswomen (SALT) Program at SGHS

               

SALT is based on the vision of teaching as many women and girls as possible how to use tools. This initiative is based on research that identifies that the majority of women who are succeeding in apprenticeships have been taught to use tools at an early age. Also, many employers are saying that women did not apply for the jobs that they offered, so SALT decided to take this on and generate social change.

The SALT workshop was held at our school on Wednesday and 17 of our students participated. The students learnt how to use many tools and built their own timber project. All the students had a productive, fun day and they learnt new skills.

Mid North Coast Open Girls Netball

Well done to Tahlia O'Hara and Hannah McNaught who played on the Mid North Coast Open girls netball team in Yamba on Tuesday. A big congratulations to Tahlia who was selected for the North Coast team. 

National Day of Action Against Bullying

The National Day of Action Against Bullying was last Friday and our school supported the event by wearing blue to show that we are a school that says "No way to Bullying".

Year 7 Stellar, Recipe for Success In-School Workshops

The Year 7 Recipe for success workshops will be held at SGHS on the 2nd and 4th April. The workshops provide students with the opportunity to explore their potential as the hero and decision maker in their own career journey. The focus of the workshop is to introduce students to skills they will use throughout their high school years as they set themselves up for life beyond school.

TAFE YES Program

The Youth Engagement Strategy (YES) Program for Year 9 and 10 students will kick off again for 2019 in Term 2 and Term 4. We have had great success with this youth engagement program and hope to bring your students some amazing programs that help to give students VET skills and some practical life skills. Outlined below is an update of the YES Programs we will be running in Term 2, 2019:      

Students wanting to participate in one of the courses listed need to see Mrs Dewberry ASAP to register.

South Grafton High School Rowing Regatta

On Sunday 3 March 2019 the South Grafton/Iluka Rowing Regatta was held. This was the last regatta of the 2018-19 season. A big congratulations to all rowers who competed and trained throughout the season. Best result for SGHS was Liam Johnson winning his division of his U15 single scull and Lex Bagster taking home gold in his handicapped single scull. Thankyou everyone involved in organising the regatta, including Iluka Rowing Club, all the volunteers and everyone who has help support. Thankyou to our sponsors for their ongoing support: Bendigo Bank, Farmer Lou’s, Naeco Blue, Holiday Coast Meats & Smallgoods. Anyone interested in rowing, we are still running training sessions Saturday mornings at 7.00 am at the Grafton Rowing Sheds for anyone who is interested. Hope to see you there.

Charlie Teo Foundation Fundraiser

           

The South Grafton High School community have spent the past few weeks fundraising for the Charlie Teo foundation with the goal of raising $500 to see school principal Kristine Pizarro and five other staff bald. Not only did they reach the target, they eclipsed it, raising over $1500 which will go toward research into brain cancer.

Sixteen students also signed up for the shave with those that volunteered raising over $500. 

Year 12 student Hugh commented that, “Brain cancer kills more children than any other disease, so if shaving our heads can raise money to go into research, I’m happy to do it”.

Student Representative Council (SRC) coordinator and participant in the shave Mr Nathan Martin said, “The SRC is always looking at ways of raising funds for different charities and when we saw the local hair dresser DiMattia and Co were raising funds for the foundation we reached out to Isabella, one of our former students, who was happy to come over and help us”.

Four Australians die from brain cancer every day, with thousands of Australian being diagnosed each year. Professor Charlie Teo is renowned throughout the world for his willingness to operate on those that other doctors have given no hope.

All money raised will go to the Charlie Teo Foundation to fund research into brain cancer.​

SCU Young Engineers School Holiday Program

When

April 18, 2019 9:00 AM to April 18, 2019 3:00 PM

Where

A Block (Enginering), Southern Cross University, Lismore Campus

More information

Each year in Term 1 school holidays, engineering at SCU offer high school students in Years 10 to 12 a one-day program to learn more about engineering and careers in this exciting field.

This day of hands-on experience will provide a taste of engineering where you can check out our world class laboratory facilities, perform experiments, work with technical equipment, develop an understanding of the importance of engineering in our world, and meet our friendly and supportive staff. 

Participants must register their attendance before Friday, 5 April 2019.  Numbers are limited.

Time:         9am to 3.00pm - Please arrive on time to ensure we adhere to the program of activities scheduled for the day. Parents/guardians are responsible for the student’s travel arrangements to and from Campus.

Cost:  There is no charge for attendance

Bring:  Long pants, covered shoes, hat, sunscreen, food, water, hair tie, pen and paper

Age group: Year 10 - 12 students      RSVP:  Thursday 5 April 2019

Registration:

Please complete the online SCU Young Engineers Registration Form, signed by the student’s parent/guardian, and return it to engineering@scu.edu.au before 5 April 2019.

Contact:  engineering@scu.edu.au or 02 6626 9714.

State of Origin 2019 Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) Excursion

South Grafton High School has been privileged to secure 50 Silver class tickets to this year’s State of Origin Game 1. The game will be held on the 5th June at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane. Students that are consistently following our school’s PBL core values of being respectful, responsible and safe, and achieving their personal best will be eligible to go into the draw for a ticket. The cost to attend will be subsidised to $100 including travel and ticket. The list of eligible students and the draw will occur towards the end of term, GOOD LUCK!

Construction Induction Course (white card)

The course will be run at the school by an external provider on the 28th March and the 5th April 9am to 3pm. If interested please see Mrs Dewberry ASAP for the application form as there are only a couple of places left. This course provides the mandatory basic health and safety training requirements for working in the construction industry.

University Open Days

Year 11 & 12 students are invited to attend the Charles Sturt University, Port Macquarie Open Day on the 9th April and the University of New England Open Day on 10th May. These excursions will provide an opportunity for students to get a feel for the University campus and investigate possible course and career options. Students that wish to attend need to see Mrs Dewberry for a permission note.

Tell Them From Me Survey

 We are delighted that this term, our school, like many other public schools in the state, will participate in a Department of Education initiative: the Tell Them From Me student feedback survey. The survey measures factors that are known to affect academic achievement and other student outcomes. The focus of the NSW-wide survey is on student wellbeing, engagement and effective teaching practices.

More information about the survey is available by clicking on the below link.

The survey is a great opportunity for our students to provide us with valuable and quick feedback on what they think about school life, how engaged they are with school and the different ways that teachers interact with them. More than 6,300 schools in Australia and around the world have used Tell Them From Me to survey 5.4 million students. Capturing the voices of our students will help improve how we do things at our school.

I want to assure you that the survey is confidential. The survey is conducted online and will typically take less than 30 minutes to complete. It will be administered during school hours between 21 March and 12 April. Participating in the survey is entirely voluntary.

A consent form and FAQs for parents/carers about the survey is being sent home with students. If you do not want your child or children to participate, please return the form to school by 21/03/2019. Copies of the form and FAQs are available by clicking on the below link.

Community News

Clarence Valley Youth Forum 201910th April 9:30-11:30amThe New School of Arts, South Grafton

The aim of the youth forum is to have a diverse representation of young people aged 12-24 years from across the Clarence Valley to be a voice for young people within our community.

Our Youth Interagency needs youth input to into programs, policies and practices that affect young people directly.

We want to know what kind of community young people want to live in and why it matters to them. We want to hear their aspirations, ideas, challenges and the key issues and barriers to progress that affect young people from their perspective.

The forum is developed on a Harwood Community Conversation Model and takes approximately 90 minutes. Free morning tea will be provided to all participants.

If interested in participating in the forum please see Mrs Dewberry ASAP to register.